Polarity Thinking: For Sustainability of Positive Community Change Efforts CONTINUITY AND TRANSFORMATION FOR ORGANIZATIONS, TEAMS, AND INDIVIDUALS POLARITY Partnership Mastery V Student: Melinda Butsch Kovacic, MPH, PHD 15s This material is based on work by Barry Johnson and Polarity Partnerships

with short-lived fixes? Do you have a “problem” with short-lived fixes? 5s

Do your problems cycle… over weeks, months, or years?

Consider changing your thinking – use Polarity Thinking to get unstuck! 5s

Polarity Thinking considers polarities… Interdependent pairs of values or points of views Appear to be unrelated, competitive or opposing. In reality, need each other over time to achieve outcomes that neither can achieve alone. Referred to as paradoxes, dilemmas, or tensions. 30s

Energy: Connects polarities, ebbs and flows Represented by an infinity loop Present regardless of whether or not we recognize it. 20s

missed opportunities to leverage Treating polarities as problems to be solved leads to unintended consequences and missed opportunities to leverage the energy of the pair. 15s

Let’s say we want to prepare for a marathon... No Pg. 10s Let’s say we want to prepare for a marathon...

The Marathon Polarity: Either/Or Training Rest and Muscle Injury Muscle Atrophy Focus your actions either pole = failure! 20s

The Marathon Polarity – Both/And Muscles Build Increased Endurance Training Rest and Focus your actions on both poles = success! 20s

Polarity Thinking: A 5-Step SMALL Process Polarity Partnerships has developed a 5-Step process to leverage polarities which integrates the Polarity Map™ and the Polarity Approach for Continuity and Transformation (PACT™) Engage Key Stakeholders S Seeing M Mapping A Assessing L Learning 60s L Leveraging

HopeFest Health and Education Festival Offers free health screenings & education for high-risk inner city kids How could we sustain a quality volunteer-led event over time? The Health Passport Screened Health data collected via paper or electronic Passport 20s Data/results shared: -Attendees -Health Screeners -Community Stakeholders

See and Map Screening Data Collection Greater Purpose * Sustainable Quality Event ** Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Values The map can be converted to an assessment to collect feedback from stakeholders! Screening Data Collection and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success unmeasured Follow-up care not received/ heath not improved Fears 30s Greatest Fear Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

Learn From the Results & Leverage Polarities * Sustainable Quality Event ** Actions Steps: Actions Steps: Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Develop volunteer training Create analysis plan and standard, tailored reports to share MOUs with screeners Emphasize need for follow-up care plan Screening Data Collection and Early Warnings: Early Warnings: Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success unmeasured Follow-up care not received/ heath not improved Attendees do not complete all screenings Data collected goes unused Many data errors Too few follow-up appointments made/kept 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

Leverage polarities well in order to avoid the downsides of both poles Sustainable Quality Event Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Screening Data Collection Leverage polarities well in order to avoid the downsides of both poles and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success unmeasured Follow-up care not received/ heath not improved 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

Well leveraged polarities Sustainable Quality Event Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Screening Data Collection Well leveraged polarities gets you the upsides of both poles and sustainability! and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success unmeasured Follow-up care not received/ heath not improved 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

Thank you for your attention! What “problems” are your community experiencing? Might they really be polarities to be leveraged? Visit: www.PolarityPartnership.com to learn more and seek PACT training opportunities Thank you for your attention! For more information, talk to myself or other Polarity Mastery V students who are in attendance at Skills Fest: -Carol Gorelick -Alexis Kidd 20s

Extra slides for questions/answers

AND THERE ARE MANY COMMON COMMUNITY-RELEVANT POLARITIES TO CONSIDER! Stability Margin Service Innovative funding Organization interest Collaborate Lead Long-term Planning Take Action Directive Either/Or Perspective Change Mission Empowerment Traditional funding Community interest Lead independently Follow Short-term Planning Plan Participative Both/And Perspective AND THERE ARE MANY COMMON COMMUNITY-RELEVANT POLARITIES TO CONSIDER! 30s

Leveraging Over Time: Stability & Change Well Managed Polarity Competitive Advantage Continuity Core Values Tap Past and Present Wisdom New Energy and Direction Creativity Tap New Wisdom Stability Change Stagnation Loss of Energy Missed Opportunities Lose Continuity Lose Core Values Foolish Risks Can’t Compete Overemphasis on Stability Overemphasis on Change Competitive Advantage Competitive Advantage Continuity Core Values Tap Past and Present Wisdom New Energy and Direction Creativity Tap New Wisdom Continuity Core Values Tap Past and Present Wisdom New Energy and Direction Creativity Tap New Wisdom Stability Change Stability Change Stagnation Loss of Energy Missed Opportunities Lose Continuity Lose Core Values Foolish Risks Stagnation Loss of Energy Missed Opportunities Lose Continuity Lose Core Values Foolish Risks Wanted to see how the poles would look on smaller maps. I like them. Can’t Compete Can’t Compete

Problem or Polarity? – Four Lenses Is the difficulty ongoing, like breathing? yes = probably a polarity to manage no = probably a problem to solve 2. Are there two alternatives that are interdependent, meaning you can only focus on one pole for so long before you are required to focus on the other pole, like inhaling and exhaling? 3. Is it necessary, over time, for you to have both identified upsides? 4. Will focusing on one upside to the neglect of the other eventually undermine your efforts to move toward your higher purpose? Ask participants to individually complete the Problem or Polarity Quiz (next page in their handouts). Put this slide up and suggest that participants use these four lenses to determine whether the each statement on the quiz represents a problem or a polarity. Allow 5 minutes for individuals to complete the quiz. Then allow another 5 minutes for tables to discuss their responses.

Top10 Polarity Realities 1. They are interdependent pairs that need each other over time and energy systems we live in and live in us. 2. Polarities have been important in history and in our lives. 3. Polarities go by different names: such as Paradox, Dilemma, and Tensions. 4. Leaders, teams, and organizations that leverage polarities well outperform those who don’t. 5. Each polarity is an energy system which flows around both poles in the shape of an infinity loop. 6. The polarity energy system is leverage- able. When this is done well, virtuous cycles are created, which leads to: Increased speed, Attainability of desired results, Sustainability of desired results 7. When a polarity is seen as a problem to solve or one pole is empowered to the neglect of the other, a vicious cycle is created. When you over- focus on one pole, first you get the downside of the pole on which you over-focus, then you get the downside of the other pole as well. 8. All polarities contain two points of view which are absolutely true AND they are a part of a pair of truths that need each other over time. To get “unstuck” seek first to understand the others’ truth and then supplement it with your own. 9. Polarity thinking uses AND to connect the two poles. Problem solving often uses OR. Leveraging Polarities AND Solving Problems is a polarity. 10. Being able to assess how well you are leveraging a polarity or set of polarities is essential to sustaining success. Jane Kise has identified the following principles in the draft of her book and they are quite similar to what we have so far…we should identify what we think they are and request that Jane use ours… JANE’S 1. Polarities are energy systems within all interdependencies in life. Where there is independence, polarities are at play. 2. Polarities are not new. They have been a part of our personal lives since our childhood when we learned things like sharing. They’ve been written about in philosophy and religion for centuries, and reaffirmed in research on leadership and organizational effectiveness over the last fifty years. 3. Polarities are interdependent pairs for which AND thinking is required. They show up in literature as polarities, dilemmas, paradoxes, tensions or the “genius of the and.” 4. And thinking is an essential addition to either/or thinking. It is not a replacement for either/or thinking. These two types of thinking are themselves an interdependent pair, a polarity. 5. In an argument over a polarity, both sides are right. A more appropriate phrasing might be that both sides are accurate but incomplete. 6. Polarities are leverageable. We don’t have to accept swinging from one pole to the other but can see, map and transform the energy system, putting to productive use the time and energy each side is expending in trying to “win”, redirecting it toward a mutual greater purpose. 7. Each pole has an upside and a downside. When we acknowledge the downside of our own pole, we are acknowledging the legitimate fears of the other side, thus opening dialogue about the portion of truth each side holds. 8. Polarities are unsolvable. The downside of one pole is often seen as a “problem” with the upside of the other pole as a “solution.” The upside of one pole is not a final solution. It is a natural self-correction in the ongoing oscillation between the two poles. Seeing one upside as a solution leads to it being called a mistake later on. With polarities, neither is a solution. Both are necessary over time. 9. Each pole brings something absolutely essential to the relationship between the two poles. We call this the upsides of the pole. Also, each pole has its own limits which are experienced most profoundly when we focus on that pole to the relative neglect of its pole partner. When we acknowledge the legitimate values and fears of the other side, we open dialogue about the portion of truth each side holds.    Here’s what we have so far so you can see how close they are! 1.Recognizing that values come in pairs is not new – for you or in history. 2.“AND” is best when differentiating the two poles of a polarity. 3.Problem-solving and polarity leveraging are both critical thinking skills -- and a polarity to leverage. 4.There are two truths in every polarity, both of which are accurate, but neither of which is complete on its own 5.Identifying and leveraging polarities helps you attain desired change, maintain continuity, and support more effective problem solving. 6.When success is tied to both poles of polarities virtuous cycles are created, which leads to: •Increased speed •Attainability of desired results •Sustainability of desired results 7.When a polarity is treated as a problem to solve or when one value pole is over-emphasized to the neglect of its value pair: ·First, there is an experience of being “stuck” in the downsides of the chosen or overemphasized value pole ·Second, there is an increasing loss of the benefits of the upsides of the chosen or over-emphasized value pole ·Third, a vicious cycle results  – the experience of  both downsides ·Fourth, the deepest fear results, which is the worst-case scenario of experiencing both downsides 8. We can make other people and groups “containers” for values and fears we disfavor and similarly become “containers” ourselves for disfavored values and fears of others. 9. A good goal for polarities is “balance” but GREAT leaders, teams, and organizations seek to fully  leverage of polarities and resilience and generative optimization! 10. To promote learning and sustaining success with multiple polarities, measurement matters.

Your Strength becomes a Weakness without On-going Integration Because I value these positive results So I miss out on these positive results Preferred Value Interdependent Value and And I end up here I try hard to avoid these negative results

Map Converted to an Assessment Give the assessment to important stakeholders to get feedback The assessment results gage your balance of the polarities

Cincinnati, Ohio Ranks No. 2 for highest child poverty rate out of all major US cities. Poverty is directly associated with disparities in access to care. HopeFest could provide free health screenings & education, but how could a high quality event be sustained over time in light of prevalent funding issues? 20s

Goal: A Virtuous Cycle or Positive Balance * Sustainable Quality Event Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Screening Data Collection and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success goes unmeasured Attendees do not receive care; event does not improve health 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

Over Focus on One Pole Screening Data Collection * Sustainable Quality Event Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Screening Data Collection and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success goes unmeasured Attendees do not receive care; event does not improve health 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

With Time - A Downswing Screening Data Collection * Sustainable Quality Event Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Screening Data Collection and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success goes unmeasured Attendees do not receive care; event does not improve health 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

…Then A Vicious Cycle Screening Data Collection Coordinated screenings * Sustainable Quality Event Coordinated screenings Easy access to follow-up Coordinated health data collection Data shared to facilitate follow-up Screening Data Collection and Data collection burdens attendees and screeners Data collected has limited benefit Screening success goes unmeasured Attendees do not receive care; event does not improve health 30s Fleeting, Poor Quality Event

Leveraging Over Time: Stability & Change Well Managed Polarity Competitive Advantage Continuity Core Values Tap Past and Present Wisdom New Energy and Direction Creativity Tap New Wisdom Stability Change Stagnation Loss of Energy Missed Opportunities Lose Continuity Lose Core Values Foolish Risks Can’t Compete Overemphasis on Stability Overemphasis on Change Competitive Advantage Competitive Advantage Continuity Core Values Tap Past and Present Wisdom New Energy and Direction Creativity Tap New Wisdom Continuity Core Values Tap Past and Present Wisdom New Energy and Direction Creativity Tap New Wisdom Stability Change Stability Change Stagnation Loss of Energy Missed Opportunities Lose Continuity Lose Core Values Foolish Risks Stagnation Loss of Energy Missed Opportunities Lose Continuity Lose Core Values Foolish Risks Wanted to see how the poles would look on smaller maps. I like them. Can’t Compete Can’t Compete

Sustain your efforts through ongoing integration of the pair! 15s